Cyril Burke
{{distinguish|Cyril Burke (Australian rules footballer)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox rugby biography
| name = Cyril Burke
| birth_name = Cyril Thomas Burke
| nickname =
| image = Cyril Burke 1950.jpg
| caption = Burke in 1950
| birth_date = {{birth date|1925|11|7|df=y}}
| birth_place = Waratah, New South Wales, Australia
| death_date = {{death date and age|2010|1|18|1925|11|7|df=y}}
| death_place = Mount Hutton, New South Wales, Australia
| height =
| weight =
| ru_position = Scrum-half
| amatteam1 = Newcastle Waratahs
| amatyears1 =
| ru_amupdate =
| repteam1 = Australia
| ru_ntupdate = 31 December 2007
| super1 =
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| super14update =
| ru_province1 = New South Wales
| ru_provinceyears1 =
| ru_provinceapps1 = 36
| ru_provincepoints1 =
| ru_provinceupdate = 31 December 2007
| ru_sevensnationalyears1 =
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| occupation =
| spouse = Marg
| children = Bruce, Colin, Paul, Ross
| relatives =
| school =
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}}
Cyril Thomas Burke BEM (7 November 1925 – 18 January 2010)[https://archive.today/20121206002552/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/19/2795395.htm Cyril Burke's obituary]. Abc.net.au (19 January 2010). Retrieved on 2018-07-15. was an Australian rugby union player, a state and national representative scrum-half who made twenty-six Test{{cite web|url=http://en.espn.co.uk/australia/rugby/player/4881.html|title=Cyril Burke|publisher=espn.co.uk}} appearances for the Wallabies between 1946 and 1956.
Playing career
Born in Waratah near Newcastle, New South Wales he had a long association with the Newcastle Waratahs club as both a player and coach. He made thirty-six state representative appearances for New South Wales (also called the "Waratahs").
His Australian representative debut was made against the All Blacks at Eden Park in 1946 and the following year he played in two domestic Tests against New Zealand when they toured Australia. He was selected in the 1947–48 Australia rugby union tour of the British Isles, Ireland, France and North America where he played in all five Tests."Burke, Cyril Thomas", pp. 125 ff in Pollard, Jack (1994) Australian rugby : the game and the players. David O'Neil (ed.). Chippendale, N.S.W. : Pan Macmillan. {{ISBN|0330356194}} He made seven overseas rugby tours including New Zealand in 1949 and South Africa in 1953 and met those same nations as well as the British and Irish Lions in several Test series played in Australia.
Accolades
Tressider quotes from a 1988 interview with 1947 Wallaby captain Trevor Allan reflecting on the tour: "I have fond memories of the tour, none better than Cyril Burke, the little Newcastle halfback who, with Col Windon, had most impact on our games. The opposition simply never knew when he was going to put the foot down on the accelerator or pull off that fantastic sidestep"'.Tressider, Phil (1988) Sydney Daily Telegraph, reproduced in Bray, Gordon (1995) Gordon Bray presents The Spirit of Rugby, Harper Collins Publishers Sydney. pp. 43–46. {{ISBN|0732251583}} His 1947 tour teammate Sir Nicholas Shehadie described him as follows: "Size was no handicap for this masterhalf-back, certainly the best I ever played with in my career. He had the biggest sidestep I ever saw from any player, delivered quick-fire service from the scrums and rucks and had a keen eye for a possible gap".Shehadie, Nicholas (2003) A Life Worth Living, Simon & Schuster Australia. p. 237. {{ISBN|0731811615}}
Honours
On 15 June 1974, Burke was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in recognition of service to sport.[https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/1059891 BURKE, Cyril Thomas], It's an Honour. He was awarded the Australian Sports Medal on 29 September 2000.[https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/968346 BURKE, Cyril], It's an Honour. The Cyril Burke Medal was named in his honour, and is presented annually to the top player in the New South Wales First Division.
He was inducted into the Australian Rugby Union's Hall of Fame in 2015.
References
=Footnotes=
{{Reflist|colwidth=25em|refs=
|date = 27 August 2015
|title = Wallabies full-back Israel Folau wins John Eales Medal for second successive year
|url = http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-27/folau-wins-john-eales-medal-for-second-year-running/6731102
|work = Australian Broadcasting Corporation
|accessdate = 11 April 2016
|url-status = live
|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160330170014/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-27/folau-wins-john-eales-medal-for-second-year-running/6731102
|archivedate = 30 March 2016
|df = dmy
}}
}}
=External links=
{{Commons category|Cyril Thomas Burke}}
- {{ESPNscrum|4881}}
{{Australian Rugby Union Hall of Fame}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Cyril}}
Category:Australian rugby union players
Category:Australia international rugby union players
Category:Australian recipients of the British Empire Medal
Category:Rugby union players from Newcastle, New South Wales
Category:Rugby union scrum-halves